DeRozan leads Raptors to sixth straight win
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[March 28, 2017]
TORONTO -- The Toronto Raptors
had lost to the Orlando Magic the two previous times the teams faced
each other.
Things are different now, several weeks later. Despite the absence
of injured All-Star point guard Kyle Lowry, the Raptors are rolling
toward the playoffs in good form.
DeMar DeRozan scored 36 points, despite missing five free throws in
14 attempts, and the Raptors dominated the Magic 131-112 Monday
night to extend their winning streak to six games.
Raptors coach Dwane Casey found something to criticize, however.
"It was brother-in-law basketball," Casey said. "We'll take the win
but we can't be happy with our defensive performance, trading
baskets like that. We have bigger goals in mind and if we intend on
achieving them, we have to have a better mindset than we did tonight
defensively."
Cory Joseph added his first career double-double for the Raptors
(45-29) with 15 points and a career-best 13 assists.
"I was just trying to make the right reads based on the defense they
were playing," Joseph said. "The guys were knocking down shots. We
shot a high percentage (59 percent) tonight and anyone I was passing
to was hitting."
The teams finished their season series at 2-2.
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"We fouled too much, we didn't protect the paint well in the first
half," Magic coach Frank Vogel said. "A guy like DeMar DeRozan
commands a lot of attention so at time we were bringing extra
attention to him and let guys get loose on the weak side. But credit
to the Raptors, they played a terrific basketball game."
Terrence Ross, who was traded to Orlando by Toronto last month, saw
DeRozan from the other side in a game for the first time.
"It's a different feeling when you're on the opposite side," Ross
said. "DeMar is a hell of a player, an All-Star, one of the best in
the league and he's capable of doing anything. We just try to slow
him down as much as we can."
The Raptors led by as many as 19 points in the third quarter and
took a 10-point lead into the fourth that soon was stretched to 15.
Norman Powell added 16 points off the bench for Toronto, Serge Ibaka
also had 16 points and nabbed seven rebounds, and Jonas Valanciunas
contributed 17 points with nine rebounds. Jakob Poeltl chipped in
with 12 points off the bench.
DeRozan understood what his coach was saying about defense. "It's
everything," DeRozan said. "We can't get comfortable because we won
a few games. Even tonight we could have played a lot better. We gave
up too many points. We still have to stay focused on the defensive
end."
Elfrid Payton led the Magic (27-47) with 22 points
and nine assists. Evan Fournier added 20 points, Ross scored 17 and
Aaron Gordon 16. Nikola Vucevic had 12 points and grabbed 15
rebounds for Orlando.
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![](../images/032817pics/sports71.jpg)
Raptors guard DeMar DeRozan (10) greets former teammate Orlando
Magic forward Terrence Ross (31) before the start of their game at
Air Canada Centre. The Raptors beat the Magic 131-112. Mandatory
Credit: Tom Szczerbowski-USA TODAY Sports
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"They were making shots," Gordon said. "Tough shots, fade-aways,
fall-aways. They were moving the ball very well and they executed."
The Raptors trailed by as many as seven points before finishing the
first quarter with a 35-34 lead. DeRozan scored 18 points in the
first quarter and Gordon led Orlando with 10.
The Raptors used an 11-0 run during the second quarter to take a
51-42 lead with 6:33 to play in the half. They increased their lead
to 18 points on an 18-foot pull-up jumper by Joseph with 3:50 left.
The Raptors led 73-57 at the intermission.
They increased the lead to 19 on a running layup by DeRozan with
8:16 to play in the third quarter.
Orlando went on an 8-0 run to cut the lead to eight on a dunk by
Vucevic with 3:35 to go in the third.
After the Magic cut the lead to five with 12.4 seconds left, the
Raptors finished the third quarter with five straight points,
including a 3-point buzzer-beater by Delon Wright after a turnover
to make the score 99-89.
NOTES: Raptors F DeMarre Carroll (sore lower back) did not play for
the second straight game Monday. F P.J. Tucker took his starting
spot at small forward. ... Magic G/F Terrence Ross met with some
former teammates before the game as he played against the Raptors
for the first time since being traded to Orlando with a first-round
draft pick for F Serge Ibaka on Feb. 14. ... The Raptors beat the
Magic in Orlando Dec. 18 and the Magic have won the past two games
between the teams, Jan. 29 and Feb. 3. ... The Raptors play the
second game of four in a row at home Wednesday against the Charlotte
Hornets. ... The Magic return to Amway Center Wednesday to play the
Oklahoma City Thunder. [© 2017 Thomson Reuters. All
rights reserved.]
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